Cotton-picker.



..E. GATHMANN.

COTTON PIGKER. APPLICATION FILED FEB.27, 1913.

I Patented Dec. 30, 1913.

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E. GATHMANN. COTTON PIOKER. APPLIGATION rum rmmv, 1913.

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E. GATHMANN. COTTON PICKER.

APPLICATION FILED PEB.27, 1913. 7 1,083,079. Patented Dec. 30, 1913.

v 3 SHEETS-SHEET 3. 229 J ITED STATES EMIL. GA'lI-IMANN, OF BALTIMORE,MARYLAND.

COTTON-PICKER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed February 27', 1913.

Patented Dec. 30, 1913.

Serial No. 751,007.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EMIL GATHMANN, a citizen of the United States,residing in the city'of Baltimore and State of Maryland, have inventedcertain new and useful Improvements in Cotton-Pickers, of which thefollowing is a specification...

My invention relates to cotton pickers of the class in which pneumaticmeans is employed 'for detaching the. cotton. fromtheboll and forconveying it to a suitable receptacle.

It has been found in practice that while pneumatic .means is eflicientfor conveying the detached cotton, it cannot always be relied on aloneto detach the cotton to enable it to be thus conveyed, and variousmechanical devices have been suggested for cooperating with thepneumatic means for so dislodging or detaching the cotton in the bollthat it may then be completely withdrawn therefrom and conveyed away.

My invention consists in certain improvements in combined mechanical andpneumatic devices for dislodging or detaching the cotton in the boll forwithdrawing it therefrom and for conveying it to a suitable receptacle,and it involves a rotary nozzle having on the interior of its mouth aspirally arranged rib which engages the cotton and draws it into thenozzle while the latter is rotating. The rib may be and preferably isprovided with teeth to assist in the operation and preferably the mouthof the nozzle is made to flare in order to cover the entire boll andthen compress the cotton prior to its entry into the pneumatic conveyingtube. Other features of my invention will be hereinafter described.

In the drawings: Figure 1 shows a side elevation of the nozzle of apneumatic cotton picker, embodying my improvements, coupled to aconveyer tube. Fig. 2 shows a top plan view thereof. Fig. 3 shows: avertical central section on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2. Fig. 4 shows atransverse section on the line H of Fig. 3. Fig. 5 shows a sideelevation of the nozzle proper detached from its coupling. Fig. 6' is aview, partly in elevation and partly in sect-ion, showing a modificationof my invention in which the spiral rib is notched and provided withteeth. Fig. 7 is a perspective view of the nozzle looking into. its:mouth. Fig. 8 shows a lon gitudinal central section through a nozzle,1ts coupling and a part of a conveyer tube, 1 and illustrates amodification of the nozzle in which the mouth is made straight oricylindrical instead of being flared. Fig. 9 is a view on an enlargedscale and in section on the line 99 of Fig. 8. Fig. 10 shows amodification in which the outer end of the nozzle is made of sheet metaland is detaohably connected with the inner end and in which the ribs areformed by bending the .;sheet metal spirally. It also shows such ribsprovided with teeth. Fig. 11 shows the sheet metal outer end of thenozzle detached from the inner portion thereof. Fig. 12 shows a sectionon the line 12'12 of Fig. 11. Fig. 13 is a detail view of a sheet metalnozzle mouth in which the ribs are omitted but wherein the interior ofthe mouth is provided with spirally arranged teeth. Fig. 14: shows anelevation of the nozzle shown in Fig. 13' looking into. the interiorthereof. Fig. 15 shows a sectional detail in which 1 spirally arrangedteeth are inserted in the mouth of the nozzle.

An essential feature of the invention is that the mouth of the rotarynozzle shall have devices arranged spirally within it which operate todislodge the cotton from ;the boll and direct it inward toward the i;conveyer tube. In Figs. 1 to 5 of the drawings I have shown thesefeatures of my invention embodied in a construction in which 4 theconveyer tube A is attached in any suitable way to a coupling B whichhas a socket b to. receive the stem 0 of the rotary nozzle C. This stem0 is formed with an inner annu- 1ar flange c which bears against thecylin- I drical wall of the socket and also against the rear endthereof. Said stem is also formed with a front or outer flange 0 whichbears 1 against the front or outer end of the socket. j In rear of theflange 0 there is a cylindrical 1 bearing portion 0 within the socket b.Any isuitable means may be employed for lubri- L eating the bearings;preferably grooves ol 3 are formed on the flange c and on the hearingportions 0 to receive graphite or other 1 suitable lubricant.

The nozzle is held in its socket by a screw D, fitting an opening in thesocket wall and carrying a roller 03 bearingagainst the flange c. Theouter end of the nozzle, shown in Figs. 1 to 5, is made to. flareoutward, thus producing a flaring mouth which receives the cotton fromthe boll and the interior of this month is formed with a spiral rib eand a corresponding spiral groove 6 directed inward so that the cottonwhen engaged by the rib will be drawn inward and moved into the conveyortube. Apertures are provided at e to admit air and assist in drawing thecotton into the nozzle and conveying it through the tube. In order toimpart a rotary motion to the nozzle, I preferably attach to its innerportion within the coupling a spur wheel F, meshing with a pinion f on ashaft G connected with a flexible shaft H, driven in any suitable way.Preferably the pinion is inclosed in a housing I, detachably secured tothe coupling as shown. By this construction a rotary motion can be givento the nozzle which by the hands of the operator may be placed over thecotton bolls (in the manner indicated in Fig. 6) and the combined actionof the spiral rib and the pneumatic suction will cause the cotton to bedislodged, withdrawn from the boll and then forced and drawn into theconveyer tube whence it passes to any suitable receptacle.

In Figs. 6 and 7 is shown a construction similar to that shown in Figs 1to 5, but in this case I form notches Z in the rib producingcorresponding teeth Z which assist in obtaining a good hold on thecot-ton when the nozzle is applied thereto.

In Figs. 8 and 9, a construction is shown which is similar in allrespects to that hereinbefore described except that the outer end ormouth of the nozzle instead of being flared is made straight orcylindrical. In this case also the rib is spirally arranged and it isprovided with teeth.

In Figs. 1 to 9 of the drawings, the outer end of the nozzle is shown asbeing made integral with the inner portion thereof, but as the month endof the nozzle is subjected to considerable wear it may be desirable tomake this portion separately and provide means for detachably connectingit with the inner or driven portion. Figs. 10 to 12 show how this may bedone. In these figures the outer end or mouth portion of the nozzle isshown as being made of sheet metal and it is detachably connected withthe inner portion of the nozzle at 6 The rib 6 may be produced bybending the metal in the manner shown to give to the rib a spiralformation and the rib may be notched at e to form teeth between thenotches, asindicated. The apertures for the admission of air are in thisinstance shown as being formed in the inner portion of the nozzle andextending in an inclined direction to the passage of the nozzle whichconnects with the conveyer tube, otherwise the construction is the sameas that hereinbefore described.

vide the mouth of the nozzle with a spirally arranged series of teeth T,as indicated in Fig. 13. These can readily be formed from the sheetmetal of the nozzle mouth in the manner indicated. I may also instead ofproducing the teeth T in the manner shown in Figs. 13 and 14 form themseparately and attach them to the nozzle in the manner shown in Fig. 15.V

By my improvements devices are provided which act mechanically on thecotton and in cooperation with the pneumaticsuction to withdraw thecotton from the boll, and these devices are self-cleaning and there. isno danger of the cotton being tangled in such devices and suspendingtheir operation, especially when the mouth of the nozzle is formed withthe spiral rib hereinbefore described. The conveying tubes may beconnected with any suitable stationary or movable pumping apparatus andsuch pumping apparatus may be provided with any desired number ofconveying tubes connecting with nozzles which may be operated by anydesired number of attendants.

I claim as my invention 1. A rotatable nozzle for pneumatic cottonpickers, having its mouth formed with a spiral rib having a plurality ofconnected convolutions for engaging the cotton, dislodging it from theboll and directing it inwar 2. A rotatable nozzle for pneumatic cottonpickers, having its mouth formed with a spiral toothed rib having aplurality of connected convolutions for engaging the cotton, dislodgingit from the boll and directing it inward.

3. A rotatable nozzle for pneumatic cotton pickers, having a flaringmouth formed with a spiral rib for engaging the cotton, dislodging itfrom the boll and directing it inwar i 4. A rotatable nozzle forpneumatic cotton pickers, having a flaring mouth provided with teetharranged spirally for engaging the cotton, dislodging it from the bolland directing it inward.

5. A nozzle for pneumatic cotton pickers, comprising an inner portionadapted to be connected with a conveyer tube and provided with means forrotating it, and an outer portion detachably connected with the innerportion and provided with a plurality of convolutions of connectedspirally arranged rotatable means for engaging the cotton, withdrawingit from the boll and directing it inward.

6. A nozzle for cotton pickers, comprising an inner driven portionadapted to be conneeted with a conveyer tube, and an outer In testimonywhereof, I have hereunto portion made of sheet metal detaohablyconsubscribed my name.

nected with the outer portion and provided with a, plurality ofconnected convolutions EMIL GATHMANN' 5 of spirally arranged rotatablemeans for Witnesses:

Withdrawing cotton from the boll and di- ALEXANDER CoXE GROOME,

recting it inward, MARY MEWSHAW.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for flv e cents each, byaddressing the Commissioner of latents, Washington, D. G.

